Wreck of the Week – Part II

If it weren’t for the fact that a 1941 Buick convertible is a terrible thing to waste, this photo of a wrecked convertible coupe and its frustrated owner would appear staged. Not so, according to Coy Thomas, the Old Cars Weekly reader who submitted the photograph. The glum Buick owner is the uncle of Jim Nardo, through whom Thomas received the photograph. Apparently, the Buick was fairly new at the time of the accident, which clearly crinkled the front end sheet metal. This master of the road surely saw more miles after a stop at the body shop.

Demolition derbies were the last hurrah of many fine cars, and California derbies in particular prematurely finished off many rust-free cars. This early-’70s derby at an unidentified California race track or fairgrounds found the driver of this #11 1964 Ford Thunderbird hardtop the winner (survivor?) in one of the qualifier events. What appears to be a Chevy behind the T-bird was driven by “Big Bad Bob.” The tow trucks in the background cleared away the wreckage. The T-bird’s 390-cid/330-hp V-8 would have given it plenty of power to use its rear bumper as a battering ram, which, by the upraised, shortened sheet metal in back, appears to have worked quite well. (Ron Kowalke collection)

“In the spring of 1957, this 1957 Chevrolet One-Fifty came out second best in a confrontation with a military Dodge 3/4-ton truck,” wrote reader Daniel C. Michela. “The incident took place on a narrow bridge on the outskirts of Seoul, Korea.” Michela explained that the base-level 1957 Chevrolet sedan, identified by the military as car No. 518, was 1 of 40 or so 1957 Chevrolets assigned to the 21st Transportation Co. at the 8th Army HQ in Seoul. At that time, the cars provided transportation for general and field-grade officers assigned to the 8th Army HQ. Michela was a member of the company and had a ’57 Chevy of his own to drive (car No. 537), which was assigned to the 8th Army Dental Surgeon. Fortunately, Michela didn’t have a “Wreck of the Week” from his own driving experiences in Seoul, though he did say “Driving in postwar Korea was always an adventure,” a point proven by this damaged ’57 One-Fifty six-cylinder.